Bale collector with rollers and baler suitable therefor

Abstract: Bale collector (1; 40; 60), comprising a frame (2; 61) provided with wheels (3; 64), bale-carrying means (13; 41; 66), coupling means which are suitable for coupling the frame to a mobile baler (6; 63) in order to receive bales (38; 90) onto the carrying means from a bale outlet (7; 65) of the baler via a front end - viewed in the direction of travel (8; 64) - of the carrying means, and also control means (24 - 33; 30' - 53; 70 - 85) for taking the carrying means into a collecting state or into an unloading state, for collecting bales on the carrying means or unloading collected bales from the carrying means and depositing them on the ground. The carrying means comprise rollers (13; 41; 66) with parallel horizontal axes, and the rollers are suitable for collecting a row of two or more bales thereon between the front end and a rear end of the carrying means. In one embodiment the carrying means with rollers (13; 41) form a two-part bottom which can be moved from below bales collected thereon, and which, after a complete row of bales (38a, 38b) has collected thereon, through control by control means (24 - 33; 30' - 53) opens in order to allow the row of bales to pass between the bottom parts and be deposited on the ground. In another embodiment (60), after initiation of the unloading state, the rollers (66) are driven in order to convey the bales (90a, 90b, 90c) backwards and deposit them on the ground.

Description: The invention relates to a bale collector according to the preamble of claim 1. A bale collector of this type is known from US 3010593. The bale collector known from this document has a relatively high loading platform on which it receives bales from a baler. The bales received fall from the platform onto a conveyor at a lower level. The conveyor comprises two endless conveyor belts next to each other and at the same height, extending at right angles to the direction of travel of the collector and driven stepwise at right angles to the direction of travel, in order to form a row of bales on the belts. After a row of bales has been formed on the conveyor belts, the row is pushed by means of a bar in the opposite direction to the direction of travel onto bale-carrying means with a relatively large surface. The bale-carrying means comprise horizontal rollers, the axes of which extend at right angles to the direction of travel. The rollers are driven stepwise during loading of the bale-carrying means with rows of bales, in such a way that the rows are moved over the rollers in the opposite direction to the direction of travel. As soon as the entire receiving surface of the bale-carrying means and of the conveyor is filled with rows of bales, an unloading mechanism is put into operation, following which all collected bales are deposited on the ground. A bale collector according to the preamble of claim 1 is also known from WO 9011007. In the case of the bale collector known from this document, the bale-carrying means consist of horizontal rollers, the axes of which run at right angles to the direction of travel. At the rear end of the bale-carrying means there is a blocking roller at a level above them. The blocking roller is provided with a conveyor screw thread. One or more rollers of the carrying means can also be provided with a conveyor screw thread. The rollers are driven in order to convey a bale received from the baler over the rollers of the bale-carrying means until it is against the blocking roller, which bale is then, or possibly simultaneously, moved by the conveyor screw thread of the rollers at right angles to the direction of travel, so that bales supplied one after another form a row of bales at right angles to the direction of travel. On completion of a row, the blocking roller is lowered, in order to convey the row of bales off the bale-carrying means. A part of the bale collector disposed further to the back can receive a number of rows of bales from the front part of the collector on a number of rollers in a horizontal plane with axes at right angles to the direction of travel and against a further blocking means, in particular a bar which can be swung away. After a suitable number of bales has been received, the blocking means of the rear part is swung away, with the result that these rows of bales are conveyed onto the ground. There are currently balers which can produce bales of large dimensions, for example bales of straw with dimensions of 2.4 m long, 1.2 m wide and 0.7 m high, and having a weight of approximately 400 kg, or bales of silage with dimensions of 1.6 m long, 1.2 m wide and 0.7 m high, and having a weight of approximately 500 to 800 kg. On account of the large dimensions and great weights of such bales, bale collectors by means of which rows of two or more of such bales can be collected in the direction of travel and deposited on the ground essentially without spaces between the bales have not been known until now. It must be observed here that during collection, and possibly while being pushed up by following bales, such heavy bales must be prevented from exerting an unacceptably high counterpressure towards the baler, as a result of which following bales would be pressed too tightly and/or the baler would be too heavily loaded and could be damaged. The object of the invention is therefore to provide a bale collector which is capable of collecting successively a row of two or more bales, in particular of the abovementioned large and heavy type, without the above problems occurring. For the purpose of achieving this object, the invention provides a bale collector of the type described in claim 1. Other features and advantages of the invention will emerge from the following description of embodiments of the bale collector and the baler according to the invention with reference to the appended drawings. In the drawings: Fig. 1 shows in perspective a bale collector according to the invention, coupled behind a partially shown baler; Fig. 2 shows in perspective a part of the synchronizing means of the bale collector of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 shows in perspective a part of the locking means of the bale collector of Fig. 1; and Fig. 4 shows in perspective the bale collector of Fig. 1 in an unloading state. Fig. 1 shows in perspective a bale collector 1 with a main frame 2, to which wheels 3 are coupled. The main frame 2 has at a front end thereof coupling means (not shown) with an essentially vertical axis of rotation, for coupling the collector 1 behind and to a mobile baler 6 with a bale outlet 7. The normal direction of travel of the baler 6 and the collector 1 during baling and collection is indicated by arrow 8. A supporting plate or supply plate 9 is disposed on the baler 6 above the abovementioned coupling means. An upright guide element 10 is disposed on the top side of the supply plate 9, in the centre thereof and parallel to the direction of travel 8. The supply plate 9 and the guide element 10 prevent bales coming out of the bale outlet 7 from changing direction during or after manoeuvring of the combination of baler 6 and collector 1. The bales delivered by the baler 6 are bales which can have large dimensions, for example bales of straw with dimensions of 2.4 m long, 1.2 m wide and 0.7 m high, and having a weight of approximately 400 kg, or bales of silage with dimensions of 1.6 m long, 1.2 m wide and 0.7 m high, and having a weight of approximately 500 to 800 kg. Along the two sides of the collector 1, and symmetrically relative to bales supplied by the baler 6, two sub-frames 11 are coupled to the main frame 2 by means of rotary means 12 with axes running parallel to each other and parallel to the lengthwise direction (during use, the direction of travel 8). The distance between the axis of rotation of the rotary means 12 of one sub-frame 11 and the axis of rotation of the other sub-frame 11 is greater than the dimensions of the bales at right angles to the axes of rotation (at right angles to the direction of travel 8). Rollers 13 whose axes of rotation run at right angles to the normal direction of travel 8 are coupled to the bottom part of each sub-frame 11. An upwardly extending arm 15 is fixed to each sub-frame 11, a top end of which arm is rotatably fixed to an end of a further arm 16. As shown in Fig. 2, the other ends of the arms 16 are rotatable relative to each other and coupled to sliding pieces 17. The axes of rotation of the couplings between the arms 15, 16 are all parallel to the axes of rotation of the rotary means 12 of the sub-frames 11. The sliding pieces 17 fit into recesses of straight vertical guides 18, which are fixed to the main frame 2. The sub-frames 11 are forced into the situation shown in Fig. 1 by means of a tension spring 20 between each matching pair of arms 15, 16. A control arm 24 is fitted at the rear side of the collector 1, which arm extends downwards, and the top end of which is coupled by means of a rotary coupling 25 to the main frame 2. The axis of rotation of the coupling 25 runs at right angles to the direction of travel 8. The bottom end of the control arm 24 is at such a low level during the collection that it is lower than the top side of bales collected on the rollers 13. The control arm 24 is forced into the position shown in Fig. 1 by means of a tension spring 26 between the main frame 2 and the control arm 24. Fixed to the control arm 24 is a pulling wire 27, which is also fixed to a locking clamp 30 which, as shown more clearly in Fig. 3, is rotatably fixed to the main frame 2 and at the other end it has a recess 31, which in the collecting position of the collector shown in Fig. 1 accommodates a strip 32, which is fixed to one of the arms 16. The clamp 30 is forced into the position shown in Figures 1 and 3 by means of a tension spring 33 (shown only in Fig. 3) between one end of the clamp 30 and the main frame 2. At the front of the collector 1, an additional supporting roller 35 is disposed between the sides of the collector 1. During operation of the baler 6, it delivers through the bale outlet 7 bales which are guided first over the supply plate 9 with the guide element 10, and then over the supporting roller 35 and the rollers 13. During movement over the rollers 13, 35 the bales push each other backwards. When a rear bale pushes against the control arm 24, the latter by way of the pulling wire 27 will cause the clamp 30 to turn, with the result that the strip 32 (Fig. 3) is released from the recess 31 of the clamp 30. The axes of rotation of the rotary means 12 are situated at such a distance on either side of the bales 38a, 38b (Fig. 4) to be collected that the weight of the bales 38a, 38b collected on the rollers 13 (Fig. 4) causes the sub-frames 11 to turn away from each other, and the bales 38a, 38b can fall between the rollers 13 onto the ground. Since the sub-frames 11 are coupled by means of the sets of arms 15, 16 and the guide means 17, 18, it is ensured that the sub-frames 11 turn simultaneously, with the result that tilting of the bales 38a, 38b about an axis running parallel to the direction of travel 8, and thus breakdown of the collector 1, are prevented. A row of bales 38a, 38b which has collected on the rollers 13 is deposited relatively quickly. Owing to the fact that the bales have pushed each other up and will be deposited simultaneously on the ground, there will be essentially no spaces between the bales 38a, 38b deposited on the ground, which makes it easier for complete rows to be picked up mechanically thereafter and processed further. When the bale collector 1 has travelled further, the tension springs 20 ensure that the position of the collector 1 shown in Fig. 1 is resumed. The rollers 13 can be driven by means of drive means (not shown), in order to make it easier to move backwards bales supplied by the baler 6, for the purpose of counteracting the counterpressure towards the baler 6 which occurs when the bales push each other up. Although the embodiment of the bale collector 1 according to the invention shown in Figures 1 and 4 is illustrated and described for the collection of a row of two bales thereon, the collector is easily made suitable for collecting a row with more bales.

Claims: Bale collector (1), comprising a frame (2) provided with wheels (3), bale-carrying means (13), coupling means which are suitable for coupling the frame (2) to a mobile baler (6) in order to receive bales (38) onto the carrying means from a bale outlet (7) of the baler via a front end, viewed in the direction of travel (8) of the carrying means, and also control means (24 - 33) for taking the carrying means into a collecting state or into an unloading state, for collecting bales on the carrying means or unloading bales from the carrying means and depositing them on the ground, the carrying means comprising rollers (13) with parallel horizontal axes at right angles to the direction of travel (8), and the rollers being suitable for collecting a row of two or more bales (38) thereon between the front end and a rear end of the carrying means, characterized in that the rollers (13) form a two-part bottom which can be moved from below bales collected thereon, each bottom part being fixed to a corresponding sub-frame (11) which is coupled by way of corresponding rotary means (12) to the frame (2), while the axes of rotation of the rotary means extend horizontally and parallel to the direction of travel (8) at a distance from each other which is greater than a dimension of the row of bales in a direction at right angles to the direction of travel, and for reaching the unloading state from the collecting state the control means (24 - 331) control the rotary means for turning the bottom parts downwards in order to allow the row of bales to go through between the bottom parts and to be deposited on the ground. Bale collector (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that drive means are disposed on the frame, which drive means are coupled to the rollers and in the collecting state drive the rollers (13), for conveying the received bales backwards. Bale collector (1) according to one of claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the axes of rotation of the rotary means (12) are disposed above the top of the rollers (13). Bale collector (1) according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the sub-frames (11) are coupled to each other by synchronizing means (15 - 18) for synchronizing the sub-frames (11) relative to the main frame (2). Bale collector (1) according to claim 4, characterized in that the control means (24 - 33) have at the rear end of the carrying means a control arm (24), the control means have pre-tensioning means (20) which force the rollers into the collecting state, and the control means have locking means (30 - 33) which are coupled to the control arm (24), in such a way that in the collecting state when the control arm is moved by a rear bale (38a) the locking means release the rotary means, in order to initiate the unloading state. Bale collector (1) according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that in the collecting state the conveyance speed imparted to the bales by the drive means is lower than or equal to the supply speed of the bales from the baler (6).

Inventors: MEIJER THOMAS HARKE DANIEL, MEIJER, THOMAS HARKE DANIEL
Applicants: MEIJER THOMAS HARKE DANIEL, MEIJER, THOMAS HARKE DANIEL
Application year: 1994
Main classification: A01D85
IPC codes: A01D37, B60P1, A01D90, B60P9, A01D85